I was super surprised to hear about Popstar's positive reception. I loved the Island's last film Hot Rod, but it was sadly not very warmly received by critics. Unfortunately, this movie's positive reception hasn't been matched by box office success, even with its minuscule production budget. But either way, Popstar is a refreshingly original and relentlessly funny modern comedy that is at times a brilliant satire of modern music.
Let's start with the negatives. There aren't many problems I actively have with the movie, other than I wish it went farther in some places. The film is presented in a mockumentary style, but it doesn't always completely commit to it both in editing, camerawork, and acting style as Spinal Tap did. It has celebrity interviews and intertitles, but it still feels very produced and not very candid, which sort of takes away from the mockery of concert docs that it wants to be. The film, being written by three guys who became popular making SNL digital shorts, also feels very episodic and, while it has a general flow and a definite storyline, doesn't feel quite as much like a complete comedic story like Hot Rod does, and feels very much like it's a series of sketch ideas strung together by a basic plotline. Samberg and company are comedians first, musicians second, and filmmakers third, and it shows.
The satire also isn't quite as biting as it could be, at least of the workings of the industry itself. The personality and ego of pop stars, their lack of rationality, ridiculous public controversies, and general demeanor of the Biebers and Kanyes of the world are flimsily explored, and the film only really goes for the superficial low-hanging targets without going into the full core of the industry's absurdity like a truly great work of satire would. The film's saving grace, however, is that with its relatively simple ambitions, it delivers in spades with a sense of humor that is still smarter and more consistent than most modern comedies.
Unsurprisingly, the movie's greatest source of its smartest, sharpest, and funniest jokes come from the music. There are several genuine toe-tappers in the film, specifically the film's opening number and a song equating one of Conner's sexual experiences to the assassination of Osama bin Laden. Probably the smartest song is titled "Equal Rights", an outrageous and very obvious parody of Macklemore's popular gay rights ally anthem "Same Love". The songs often succumb to the Loney Island's sort of simplistic songwriting technique of listing funny things that rhyme, but much like most of the spoken dialogue in the film, they're funny, fast, and relentless.
And these jokes would be nothing without good comedic performances, which this film has plenty of. Andy Samberg, unsurprisingly, absolutely steals the show, and this is by far his greatest screen presence to date. Popstar may not fully commit to its parody in the way of filmmaking, but the one facet of the film exuding complete authenticity to its subject matter is Samberg's portrayal of Conner. Samberg masters the body language, mannerisms, speaking patterns, and cocksure lack of empathy both in the musical performances and during his own dialogue. Once the whole Lonely Island team finally pairs up, their chemistry is palpable, and the realization that this is very much a film made by friends for themselves is actually pretty sweet.
Overall, Popstar doesn't reinvent the mockumentary or musical satire, and doesn't even really fully commit to either, but thankfully does fully commit to being a breezily paced and often belly laugh-inducing comedy with some genuinely great musical numbers bursting with wit, wonderful comedic performances led by Andy Samberg, and some fun celebrity cameos - essentially everything you'd expect in a Lonely Island movie. If you're a fan of their work at all, you'll have a great time with this one.
Grade: B+
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